African-Americans with prostate cancer more likely to have family history of prostate, breast cancer: U-M study

added 11/29/06

Ann Arbor, MI. -- African-American men with
prostate cancer were more likely to report a family
history of prostate cancer and breast cancer among siblings than men who did not have prostate cancer, according to
researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Jennifer Beebe-Dimmer, MPH, Ph.D.

The data were part of the Flint Men's Health Study, a population-based study of African-American men ages 40-79
who live in Flint, Mich. The Flint Men's Health Study focuses specifically on African-American men as part of an
effort to determine why they face a higher risk of prostate cancer than white men.

The findings from this study support previous studies that have found increased risk of prostate cancer among men
reporting a brother diagnosed with the disease. Furthermore, breast cancer diagnosed among both sisters and mothers
of men with prostate cancer was more often diagnosed at a younger age, suggesting premenopausal breast cancer. Both
breast and prostate cancer typically occur in older populations. Results of the study appear in the November issue
of Urology.

Some 121 men with prostate cancer completed surveys about their family history of cancer, including prostate
cancer among the men in their family and breast cancer among the women. Another 179 control men without prostate
cancer were also surveyed.

Men with prostate cancer were 4.8 times more likely to report having a brother diagnosed with prostate cancer and
about four times more likely to report a sister diagnosed with breast cancer, the researchers found.

"Previous studies have suggested having a brother with prostate cancer confers higher risk than another relative,
such as a father or son. But this is the first time a link has been shown between sisters with breast cancer and
prostate cancer risk among African-American men," says lead study author
Jennifer Beebe-Dimmer, MPH, Ph.D.,
assistant research scientist and lecturer in the Department of
Epidemiology at the U-M School of Public Health.

"This is an important finding because the Flint Men's Health Study is one of a few studies conducted exclusively
in a minority population that is known to be at high risk for developing prostate cancer," Beebe-Dimmer says.
Black men are 60 percent more likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer, regardless of family history.

Older age and a family history of prostate cancer are the primary risk factors for the disease, in both blacks
and whites. A first-degree relative with prostate cancer increases a man's risk by two to four times, and the more
relatives who are affected, the more the risk increases.

Kathleen Cooney, M.D.

"Collecting a family history of prostate and breast cancer, especially among siblings, could be a key component of
assessing prostate cancer risk among African-American men. A well-documented family history may signal a need for
more intense prostate cancer screening," says senior study author
Kathleen Cooney, M.D., professor of internal
medicine and urology at the U-M Medical School.